Tag Archives: 2 stroke

Bike of the Month January 2019

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OK, I have to admit that I’m biased. Biased towards slabbies and 2-strokes that is. Particularly towards 2-stroke Suzukis that I used to own and wish I’d kept, like the RGV250 VJ21. So, seeing as it’s just been finished (are they ever really though?) and been on the OSS stand at Newark and looks fantastic, my (biased however wholly deserved) choice for this month’s BOTM is Simbec1863’s lovely RGV250.

Purchased in reasonable-looking condition however with some significant shortcomings, Simbec1863 didn’t muck about and got stuck in.  His plan was to fully strip it then clean, refurbish or replace parts on a tight budget. The end result is stunning so I think we can safely say he achieved his goal and then some.

Got to love a pile of genuine Suzuki parts in their baggies…

Suspension was stripped and in need of some love…

Engine was removed and given some special attention before being refitted…

Stir in some trick bits along the way…

So many parts got refreshed, repainted or replaced…

Loving those pipes and how clean everything looks…

And last but not least the essential OSS sticker 🙂

Gorgeous end result, so clean and understated with original Suzuki parts like the mirrors, indicators and mudguard still being in place. Yet with plenty of details when you look closer that reflect how much it has been sorted and improved upon.

So, Simbec1863 congratulations! Your RGV250 is this months BOTM.

Read the project thread here.

Discuss this article here.

Bike of the Month September 2018

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I’m not one for drinking (much) but generally, the best ideas are conjured up during a good session on the booze. This bike came to frutition just like that.

Imagine just any cool bike. Did you? Was it a GS500E? I bet it wasn’t. When you put that night on the piss into the equation and you start toying with ideas, together with some equally pissed up friends, what’s not cool in the sober world, can be mindblowing in the other.

The title of the buildtopic of this particular bike raised some eyebrows amongst those with access to certain buttons but with the story unfolding in high gear, all was well. The OP was left to it and we all got to see how Tony actually went ahead with his mad plan and built what could arguably be the raddest GS500E on the planet.


We’re very narrowminded here and don’t like too many different bikes, the GS500E normally really isn’t one of them. Tony’s bike however, is an example how, if you’re a bit creative and have a very big partsbin, you can cheaply make something utterly undesirable into the coolest bike on the block.

Tony, congratulations, your GS is this months Bike of the Month

Discuss here

Buildthread here

Bike of the Month April 2018

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2 strokes… the smell, the noise, the power band, the teenage memories, your first (indicated) 100mph. Some of us grew up around them and personally I still have a hankering for one. A lovely X7 would make an excellent choice.

Speaking of excellent and X7 in the same sentence, it was time to choose this month’s BOTM and when I saw alfiestorm’s finished bike it had to be it.  When did we last have a bike of the month without cams?

As many projects start, it was bought originally to simply do up a little and get it MOT’d and on the road. Upon investigation however it soon transpired that there more work to do and indeed an opportunity to make it really nice.

The bike was dismantled, the engine was stripped, rebored and rebuilt. Lots of powdercoating and paintwork.

The tank was found to be really nasty and full of filler. Lots of work done and oh… those spannies! The result is a bike that looks ‘period right’ yet isn’t pretending to be standard… much like the one I’d have loved to have had back in the day.

So alfiestorm, your lovely little X7 is this months BOTM.

Read the project thread here.

Discuss this article here.